16 more killed in Kashmir explosion, shootouts

An explosive went off under a bridge, killing three soldiers, said Border Security Force (BSF) spokesman Neeraj, who uses only one name.

He said five BSF troops were on a regular patrol to detect any bombs before the military allows its vehicles to pass through the area at Ganeshpora town, 70 kilometers (43 miles) south of the summer capital Srinagar.

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The two other troops were wounded and the bridge suffered damage, Neeraj said, adding they were air-lifted to Srinagar's army hospital.

Ganeshpora, in the Anantnag district, lies on the main road between Srinagar and Pahalgam, the restive Himalayan province's premier mountain resort.

The road was shut down after the blast and police searched house-to-house to track down rebels.

Kashmir's dominant rebel group Hizbul Mujahedin owned the responsibility for the killing, saying the blast killed five soldiers, a local news agency said.

In the neighbouring village of Sagam, rebels shot dead a soldier in an overnight ambush with automatic rifle fire and hand grenades, a police spokesman said.

Two rebels and an Indian army soldier were killed in an overnight gunbattle in the southern district of Poonch, the spokesman said.

He said three Indian troops were also injured during the ten-hour fight.

Indian soldiers killed three Muslim rebels in two shootouts in the northwestern Kupwara district Tuesday, he said, and another two rebels were shot by the Indian army near Patan township, 30 kilometers (19 miles) north of Srinagar.

Another militant was killed in the neighbouring village of Kangroosa.

Police said three Muslims were killed overnight and Tuesday by suspected militants in the southern districts of Rajouri, Doda and Udhampur.

No group has taken responsibility for the killings.